Saxo Bank, the online multi-asset trading and investment specialist, announced an increase in monthly average FX volumes of nearly 600% compared to December 2011 on Saxo Direct, its cross-asset API (Application Programming Interface) solution for institutional clients. In the same period, CFD and Cash Equities volumes on Saxo Direct increased by 650%. New clients using the Saxo API service are primarily retail aggregators and asset managers. The number of active clients grew significantly in 2012.

Saxo Direct provides institutional clients with FX and CFD liquidity and an enhanced pricing and execution offer for their use or for their own clients. Saxo approaches the Direct API channel by leveraging the expertise gained over years of managing their own relationship with liquidity providers, and uses these same tools, metrics, and expertise to construct customised feeds to provide reliable high quality liquidity services to Saxo Direct clients.

Based on the FIX Protocol, the Saxo Direct API solution connects to clients FIX trading engines and Order Management Systems. Customers can trade FX, CFDs (Indices and Commodities), CFD DMA, Stocks and Futures using a single API. Saxo Direct also supports connectivity for a range of Metatrader 4 solutions and has added support for several new third party platforms in 2012

Lucian Lauerman, Head of API Business at Saxo Bank comments: “2012 has been a very successful year for our institutional offering, and Saxo Direct in particular has seen extraordinary growth. We have invested substantial resources into building relationships and connectivity with retail aggregators, asset managers and technical facilitators. We will now continue to further develop and enhance the functionality of Saxo Direct to provide a market-leading solution.”

Saxo Bank has always focused on technology to remain at the forefront of the online trading industry. With thousands of clients around the world, Saxo Bank places particular emphasis on safeguarding client information and controlling, executing and managing real-time internal systems with the utmost security. A world-class team of IT professionals works round the clock to ensure that all Saxo Bank information and operating systems are completely secure.

Since the early 1990s, Saxo Bank has facilitated trading in Forex and other assets, aggregating liquidity, providing access to global exchanges and offering an impressive range of products and platforms to private investors, stakeholders, institutions, banks and brokerage firms.

Saxo Bank has been a fully regulated European bank since 2001, supporting a worldwide base of retail clients, corporations and financial institutions from its headquarters in Denmark and a network of regional offices.

With its outstanding client service, aggressive pricing and development of superior trading platforms, Saxo Bank has quickly become a major presence in the world of online trading.